


Caramel Macchiato

by persikovaya



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Barista Bucky Barnes, Bisexual Bucky Barnes, Coffee Shops, Don't copy to another site, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, M/M, Mutual Pining, Post-Serum Steve Rogers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-15
Updated: 2019-07-15
Packaged: 2020-06-25 18:11:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19751071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/persikovaya/pseuds/persikovaya
Summary: Bucky works at Starbucks and plays for both teams — and never before have these two circumstances caused him any trouble.Until now, that is.





	Caramel Macchiato

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Карамель Маккиато](https://archiveofourown.org/works/19384732) by [persikovaya](https://archiveofourown.org/users/persikovaya/pseuds/persikovaya). 



> So I've decided to try my hand at translating not only from English to Russian, but also vice versa and this short and sweet fic that I originally wrote in Russian is my first experimental subject.  
> Hopefully it turned out okay, but please feel free to correct me or suggest something, it will only make me happy. Learning something new is always cool, after all.  
> "Playing for both teams" is an euphemism for bisexuality.  
> Enjoy!

Bucky admits to himself that he likes this new guy who he had never seen before but who started coming almost every day a little less than two months ago and who orders caramel macchiato every time (and who didn’t gain a pound after forty-five drinks, how is that even possible — and no, Bucky did not keep track of the number of times this guy has been here) on July 5th.

The New Guy shows up with a girl — also blond and also pretty — on July 7th.

Bucky finds a note on a napkin on their table on July 11th.

Under a cup of сhai latte the girl bought for herself.

He takes it, of course, and hides it in his pocket until the end of his shift. That was meant for him, right? Got to be.

By the time his shift ends he manages to worry himself sick, but still only allows himself to touch the napkin with a note on it through his apron’s pocket to make sure it’s still there.

Finally, after five insufferable hours and forty-eight even more insufferable minutes, he leaves, letting the manager lock the doors for the night and pulls the napkin out of his jacket’s pocket to read it right there in the dim evening light.

 _“ ~~I want to,~~ ”_ the note reads.

 _“ ~~Do you want to,~~ ”_ it reads.

Bucky reads it, holding the note to the light of the window, because simply striking out the letters apparently seemed insufficient to him or her, and he or she also scribbled over the lines a couple of times.

 _“You look amazing with a bun”_ , the letters on a napkin say for the third time, and this, this is almost easy for Bucky to discern, he only somewhat squints at it in a hazy light. _"Call me. If you want to. We could go somewhere nice. If you want to. 212-209-5250 —S.”_

It makes it all so much easier. He has a name now. Or its first letter, at the very least. And that's important because, despite the fact that she is beautiful and Bucky plays for both teams, he is interested in _him_. If the note is from a girl - which is most likely, given that it was under her cup and not his - he simply won’t call her and they will move on and it will be almost just as uncomfortable as if they were exes meeting every single day while the one serves the other their drink, only, yeah, they kinda never dated in the first place. If this note is from him... Bucky almost wants to jump at the thought, because that — _that_ would be perfect.

***

On July 18th the weather forecast predicts rain, but they still come and speak loudly in an almost empty store. Bucky cleans the bar stand and listens to them talking. Sweeps and listens to them talking. Serves drinks and listens to them talking.

“Steve!” the girl exclaims and Bucky realizes he’s smiling like an idiot. “Seriously, how can you be so stubborn? Come on, we shouldn’t miss the chance, you’ll love it!”

He considers it and then puts his palm on the top of hers on the table and that, Bucky doesn’t like that at all. Are they looking for the third for their threesome or something?

“I know, but ...” he cuts himself off, and damn, that voice with that body with that face... Bucky is suddenly almost in for a threesome. “I believe you, but I really am not in the mood today. Next time I’ll be there. Promise.”

This seems to upset the girl and Steve repeats a bit more gently, still not removing his hand, stroking her palm with his thumb, “Okay, Sharon?”

Of course. Of course, that's just his luck.

Honestly fuck them and their possible swingers parties. How is he supposed to guess who's the _S_ that left him that note if both of their names start with that exact letter?

***

The New Guy (Bucky refuses to say his name, now it’s personal) comes almost every day, the girl (hers, too) sometimes comes with him, and neither of them seems to be anxious or at least a bit nervous.

Bucky starts to think it was all a joke and feels like an idiot for thinking about it for so long.

On July 27th The New Guy comes alone. He doesn’t order anything, he just sits by the window by himself and is on his phone, and Bucky honestly should come up to him and start the usual _I’m Sorry Sir You Can’t Just Sit Here You Have To Order First,_ but damn, he refuses to do it. It’s just humiliating.

Especially considering that, because of the terrible hellish heat outside (damn weather, he undoes top two buttons on his shirt but does it help? as if), there are only a few people inside a store again.

The New Guy comes up to him himself. Opens his mouth. Closes it. Freezes. And then Bucky's anger at him and the weather gets the better of him and he totally snaps.

“Yeah, you want your caramel macchiato, yeah, your name’s Steve. Have you ever heard of making friends with someone who has a name that starts with a different letter of the alphabet than your own? Friendship bracelets look better that way or some shit.”

Bucky isn’t going to say some things out loud — namely, that they may very well be a couple or that they apparently wanted to invite him for a threesome.

The New Guy opens his mouth and then slowly closes it.

“I...” He begins with a puzzled expression. “What?..”

“You. Your girlfriend. Steve. Sharon. Bucky. Nice to meet you, you’re fuckin' hot, she’s pretty too, but I won’t be the third for you. Questions?”

Now he really looks like he just had a stroke. Bucky silently make him his 60th anniversary caramel macchiato.

“She's not my girlfriend,” he finally says, meeting Bucky’s gaze over the coffee machine. “And we didn’t want to invite you to be the... third. She wanted…”

Bucky truly starts to feel like shit. Not only did this hot guy not want to date him, he's also gonna say it to his face.

“She wanted me to finally make a move,” says The New Guy, folding and unfolding the napkin and not looking Bucky in the eyes. “Sharon made me write that note, as a joke — to practice or something, and then she left it when I wasn’t looking. Later she told me, and I told her we’ll never go to this Starbucks again.”

Bucky digests this information. The coffee machine makes a loud, annoying beeping sound.

“And?” he finally says.

“And I came,” Steve replies matter-of-factly, looking up at him and smiling. “I mean, of course there was, still _is_ a chance that you don’t like me or that you’re not into guys in general, but there is also a chance you like me and you’re into them, right?”

The coffee machine beeps again, but Bucky’s head feels light and empty.

“Dude,” he says, looking Steve dead in the eye.

Steve freezes again, immediately and noticeably.

“So… no?” Damn, he really is sad about it, it’s written all over his face. “You meant that you wouldn’t want to be the third because you wouldn’t want me to be the second, and I’m not—”

“Dude,” Bucky interrupts, raising his hand. “First, have you seen yourself? Second, have you heard yourself? You look like a goddamn Apollo and you’re sweeter than this caramel macchiato, and I swear to god two months ago I would’ve never thought that there is something sweeter than this shit.”

Tiny wrinkles on Steve's forehead smooth out, he tilts his head to the side and smiles once more, wider and brighter.

“You mean… You want to?..” And Bucky doesn’t know how to handle that damn smile, because even if he didn’t like Steve before, saying no to that is something akin to kicking a puppy.

He wants to.


End file.
